


2 Weeks Later

by HiddenLycan



Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-17
Updated: 2019-03-25
Packaged: 2019-11-21 09:56:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 15,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18140702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiddenLycan/pseuds/HiddenLycan
Summary: “It’s just, I’ve watched people leave before. Family, friends. They never come back. But you did. And, now I can’t imagine what it would be like if you weren’t here.”“I think, I mean, I hope… we’re more than friends. And, I want…”Or how Clementine falls for Violet within two weeks that even she assumes they are a couple.





	1. Day 1 - Memories

\-----

“ _I always liked this room. Sophie had, like, paintings and shit on the walls. Lots of color. And Minerva… she was really musical. Not like Louis, though… she had actual talent.”_

“ _They sound like great friends.”_

“ _Yeah, Sophie was a good friend. And Minnie… Uh… We were close. Me and her.”_

_\-----_

“So tomorrow you and Louis can finish fortifying the back wall with the wire. Aasim and I will take a perimeter check. Make sure there are no missing gaps,” Violet said while walking with Clementine towards Clementine and AJ’s room. A soup bowl for AJ rested between Clementine’s hands.

“Yeah, I can do that,” Clementine replied as the two arrived at the door. She raised an eyebrow when Violet didn’t leave.

“Uhh, how’s AJ doing, actually? Ruby told me that his gunshot wound should be healing but how’s his fever?”

“It’s getting better. Want to have a look yourself?” Clementine offered to Violet, opening the door.

Inside, AJ was sitting on the side of the bed, his attention absorbed by the book in his hands.

“Hey, kiddo. Brought you dinner. What’d you find?” Clementine inquired, placing the soup bowl on the table.

“A scrapbook, Clem.” AJ pushed the book out to show Clem. “Look! There are pictures of Violet and Tenn!”

Shit. The memories book. Clementine had completely forgotten about its existence.

“AJ! What did I teach you about opening other people’s stuff?”

The kid shrunk at the reprimand, shutting the book, Clementine instantly regretting her tone.

“What? I-I didn’t mean to. It was just lying there in the drawer. I didn’t know it was…”

“It’s okay, AJ. You can look at it.” Violet calmly stated, walking over and sitting next to AJ on the bed. “Honestly, I’m just surprised it’s still there. I thought Brody and Tenn would have done a clean sweep of the room,” she continued wistfully, her eyes scanning the room and catching Clementine’s eyes.

After seeing Violet nod her consent, Clem let out a breath she’d been holding and placed herself on AJ’s other side.

“Well, if Violet says it’s okay, then I guess we can take a look at it.”

“Um, okay,” AJ responded awkwardly, perplexed by the quick change in atmosphere. He opened the book back again to the first page. “See, Clem? There’s Violet. And here’s Tenn.”

“Yeah, and these must be Tenn’s sisters.”

“Yup,” Violet chimed in and pointed them out. “This one is Sophie and this one is Minnie.”

“Cool,” AJ remarked. He casually flipped through the next few pages, each of them exhibiting pictures of the siblings and Violet smiling and laughing, decorated with corresponding stickers and subtitles to emphasize their bond.

“Did Sophie make this book?” Clementine asked.

“Yeah. Told us that we couldn’t remain kids forever so one day she whipped out her camera and started taking pictures. The book came half a year later.” Violet smiled faintly at the memory. “Of course, that was before all this shit went down.”

“I like it. It’s a nice book,” Clem commented as AJ flipped to the next page. One snapshot of Violet caught her eye. It was a picture of Violet with her blonde hair wildly tousled, her face and clothes splattered in a motley assortment of paint. The photo was captioned in obnoxious rainbow letters: ‘PAINT FIGHT!!!’ “You were a pretty cute kid.”

“Really? My hair was so messy then.”

Clementine grinned to herself. AJ finished flipping through the last few pages.

“It’s done,” he mentioned, disappointment coloring his face.

“Yeah, we should put it back.” Clementine glimpsed at Violet in case she had a different response. The other girl said nothing.

AJ slipped the book back into the drawer, staying there even after he closed it.

“Clem?”

“Yeah, kiddo?”

“Can… can we make a memory book like that someday? I know we can’t do it now cause the raiders are coming, but when the raiders are gone, maybe? It seems like a nice thing to have. To remember stuff.”

Clementine grimaced. What should she say? She didn’t even know if they could stay after the raiders were gone or even if the school would survive the attack. Let alone find the materials to make a scrapbook. She chanced another look at Violet to consider AJ’s request, hoping that Violet would say yes.

Violet smiled at her in confirmation before turning back to AJ.

“Sure, we can do that, little man. I think Tenn still has some of the materials in his room. Once this is over, we can have him break it out and you can put all your favorite people in it.”

“Really?” AJ brightened. “Then I want to put us in it! And Clem, of course. And then, and then Tenn and Louis! And then, and then maybe Ruby? She helped me get better.”

Violet chuckled. “Yeah, she did. You do seem better, AJ.” She rose up from the bed. “I should get going. We have a long day tomorrow.”

Clementine watched Violet’s back head towards the door.

“Vi?”

The girl froze at the nickname.

“Yeah?”

“Good night.”

A smile ghosted through Violet’s face at the valediction.

“Good night to you two, too. Sweet dreams.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wrote this to tide myself over the long wait for Episode 4, which it did a pretty good job of doing that at least. Will be posting the rest of the chapters in the next few days (after I hack away at them.)
> 
> Has anything like this been written already? I didn't see any and falling in love/pre-relationship is my favorite part of the story... so this is my interpretation.


	2. Day 2 - Constancy

\-----

“ _Back off! All of you!”_

_~_

“ _You don’t have to make up shit! Marlon was a fucking murderer and a liar, and if we’d all ask more questions about Minnie and Sophie disappearing last year, none of this would’ve happened!”_

_~_

“ _Thanks for trying to keep us.”_

“ _You’re welcome. I wish you could stay. I didn’t want this.”_

_\-----_

“Hey Clem,” AJ piped up, interrupting Clementine.

“What’s up, AJ?” She looked up from searching her backpack. The screwdriver will have to wait.

“I feel a lot better now. Can I go help you with the… the…”

“Defense.”

“Yeah, the defense. I want to help you with it.” AJ grinned.

Chuckling at his good mood, Clementine placed the back of her hand on AJ’s forehead. “Well, it does look like your fever has gone down.” She lifted his shirt. Dried-out blood stained the newly-wrapped bandages around his stomach. “I don’t think you’re quite ready, though…But you can join me for lunch. How about that?”

“Okay,” AJ acquiesced. “It’ll be better than staying in this room. Being here all day makes me feel trapped.”

\-----

“Oh look who’s back.” A dark voice muttered at the teen-and-child duo.

“Mitch!” Ruby berated. Clementine and AJ walked up to Omar at the campfire, eyeing the older group of Ericson students sitting nearby.

“What? Just because we need Clementine’s help doesn’t mean I trust the kid.”

“Mitch, will you shut the fuck up?” Violet slammed her fist into the table. “They’re just here to get lunch.”

“Hmph, sorry that I don’t feel comfortable eating with a murderer,” Mitch sneered back.

Clementine could feel AJ reaching for her jacket.

“Jeez, Mitch, can’t you lay off? We’ve all had a long day here and your complaining isn’t helping,” Aasim grumbled.

“Lay off? How can I lay off when my brains might get blown out any minute?”

“God, Mitch, will you get your head out of your ass?” Violet stood up from her seat to face Mitch head on. “I know you don’t like AJ but right now we need both of them to get through this, okay? So get your act together and stop trying to start a fight.”

Mitch balled up his hand into a fist before letting go, breaking eye contact with Violet.

“Jesus, Vi. It’s only been a week and already you’ll do anything to protect your new girlfriend.”

The air suddenly felt cold despite the warmth from the sun.

“Wow. Low blow, Mitch,” Clementine heard Louis comment.

She watched Violet clench her teeth, numerous emotions flashing through those green eyes of hers. Indignation. Hurt. Frustration. Conviction. Finally, Violet swept her soup bowl into her hand, walking towards Clementine and AJ.

“Follow me. We can go to Tenn’s room to eat. That might be better right now, for everyone’s sake.”

\-----

As soon as they entered Tenn’s room, Clementine felt like they entered another dimension away from the school. No longer were there sterile gray walls or crude vandalism. Instead the room was painted a pale yellow with some odd streaks of red and pink. Miscellaneous toys flanked the area, mostly dominating the bed and dresser. On the walls, several drawings and paintings were posted, some more detailed than others. Clementine assumed those were the last reminders of Sophie.

Beside her, AJ gawked, the difference in their rooms too large for him to process.

“AJ, lunch first.”

“Right.” AJ brought the bowl to his face, wolfing down the stew at breakneck speed.

“Slower, AJ. You won’t be able to digest anything like that.”

AJ frowned at her, lowering the bowl marginally.

“Okay, I’m done. Can I go play with Tenn now?” He put the empty bowl on Tenn’s desk.

“Yeah, just don’t get into any arguments, okay? These are his toys.”

AJ dashed over to join Tenn in the corner, constructing a log house for his pioneer family. Once the two were settled in a rhythm, Clementine padded over to Violet, sitting on the floor next to Tenn’s bed.

“Thanks,” she greeted.

“For what? Bringing you to Tenn’s room?”

“For standing up for us. All the time. Mitch was right, you know? I mean, not about the ‘girlfriend’ thing, but knowing us for a week and still sticking up for us. Through Marlon and the raiders and everything.”

She paused, weighing whether the next question was appropriate or not.

“Why do you do it? Marlon wasn’t the greatest human but he was still your friend. It’s not… it’s not only because of the raiders now, is it?”

“… Marlon may have been a friend, Clem. But that doesn’t change the fact that he ruined my life.” Violet responded, her hands digging into her jeans and the floor. “He sent Sophie and Minnie away. To become soldiers! And I can’t, no, I’ll never forgive him for that… But that’s not the reason.”

Her shoulders drooped, the anger dissipating out of her as if it never came in the first place. She fingered the loose strings on her knees, snapping one occasionally.

“I know what it feels like to be thrown out as a child for a mistake, Clementine. I didn’t want that to happen to AJ. It’s… it’s not a good feeling.”

Clementine wanted to ask what Violet meant, what mistake did she do to get sent here, but kept silent. It didn’t seem like her place. Not now, at least.

Violet gave a weak smile to Clementine.

“So yeah, as long as you and AJ want to stay, I’ll support you. Don’t worry about Mitch and the others. I can handle them.”

AJ and Tenn’s log house had transformed into a village, the pioneers now accompanied by other travelers.

“Thanks, Vi. I’m glad you’re here.”


	3. Day 3 - Training

**\-----**

“ _Um, you kicked ass, Violet. A-plus.”_

“ _I know.”_

_~_

“ _Awesome. Mm, this one’s easy. Smart, clean, vicious, dependable. Someone you want with you in a fight.”_

_\-----_

“Aasim, put more strength and speed into those punches!” Clementine yelled, capturing Aasim’s fist and tossing him to the side. “They’re too obvious! Anyone will be able to block them.”

With Aasim down, Clementine changed her focus to Louis, attempting a few jabs of his own. She effortlessly dodged his punches and noted the hesitance in them.

“Louis, you can’t be afraid of hurting me, okay?” she shouted, closing in on him. “Those raiders aren’t going to give a second thought about hurting you so come at me like you mean it!”

Louis reacted with a heavier strike, but it was already too late. Clementine landed a solid blow into his gut and he buckled into the dirt, clutching his stomach.

Behind her, Clementine heard a murderous roar. She swung around to meet Mitch, ducking and sweeping his legs with a low kick.

He toppled over with an unsightly grunt.

“Mitch, you may be big and strong, but if you keep on charging like that, you’re going to get yourself killed.”

All three boys lay on the ground heaving for air, no intention of standing up anytime soon.

Clementine sighed, brushing off the sweat with the back of her hand. The new training sessions were supposed to make the students more hardy, but judging from the first class, it was going to take a long while before any of them were combat-ready.

She noticed Violet and Ruby enter in from the gates, carrying more fertilizer for Mitch’s bombs.

“Vi, come spar with me,” Clementine challenged, catching the leader’s attention. Her eyebrows furrowed at the sight of Clementine.

“You sure? You look tired.”

Clementine steeled herself into a fighting position.

“Still alert enough to kick your ass.”

That elicited a reaction out of the other girl. She saw Violet put down the fertilizer bags and say something to Ruby. Ruby nodded and left to go put her portion of the bags away.

Violet slowly skulked towards Clementine, a glare painted on her face and determination burning behind her eyes. She cracked her knuckles, ignoring the boys who had now scampered towards the wall.

Clementine instinctively dug her heels further into the earth.

Like the others, Violet threw the first punch. Unlike the others, Violet knew how to follow through, sending out an uppercut. Clementine skipped back to maintain her distance, scarcely dodging another cross. She returned with her own cross, but it was too slow, Violet gracefully backing out and jumping back in with another punch.

The two of them continued trading blows for a while. Punch. Evade. Cross. Block. Kick. Side-step. As time passed, it became clear to everyone who was the winner with Clementine ending up pinned against the ground, Violet’s arm against her neck, and her leg against Clem’s stomach.

“So what did you say about kicking my ass?”

“Maybe…” Clementine inhaled and exhaled, trying to catch some semblance of a breath. “Maybe I was more tired than I thought?”

“Uh-huh,” Violet teased.

She released Clem and offered a hand. Clementine gratefully accepted it and let the other girl pull her up. Once assured that Clem could properly stand, Violet left to go reclaim her fertilizer bags, Clementine tagging alongside her.

“You’re a really good fighter, Vi. Way better than the rest of the kids.”

“I know.”

“How, though?” Clem asked. “You hate sports.”

“I don’t ‘hate’ sports. I just think baseball is a fucking dumb one.”

“It is not!”

“Yes it is! Only three people get to play and the rest just sit or stand around doing fucking nothing. It’s a dumbass sport.”

Clementine pouted. Baseball had been her dad’s favorite sport. She'll need to show Violet the marvels of baseball one day.

Silence settled between the two of them until they reached the old biology classroom, now labeled ‘MITCH’S BLOW SHIT UP GET SHIT(ty raiders ) DONE( in ) LAB’. Violet deposited the remaining fertilizer bags over the ones Ruby brought in.

“I fought so the twins and Tenn didn’t have to.”

Clementine looked over to Violet, confused on what she was talking about.

“Your question. I didn’t answer it earlier.”

“Oh, right.”

Violet ambled towards the classroom windows, coaxed by the autumn foliage outside. She crossed her arms across her chest, her back falling into its usual slouch.

“Tenn, Minnie, and Sophie. They hated fighting. Tenn still does. Only fought when they needed to and even then, they didn’t do it well because they didn’t want to.”

Clem recalled Violet’s words back in the office.

“ _Minnie didn’t even like killing walkers.”_

“So I picked up the pace. If I was a better fighter, then I could cover for them. Keep them safe, you know?”

Violet clutched at her sleeves, the fabric constricting around her elbows.

“For practice, I… I used to spar with Marlon when he was alive. We’d fight every so often in the courtyard. Fought twice as hard when we lost someone. I thought it was the main thing we had in common. Wanting to protect the people we love.”

She snorted, dropping her arms and turning around to face Clementine again.

“Not that any of that matters now.”

“What do you mean?”

“The sparring. The twins were taken anyway and now we’re fucked against a bunch of trained soldiers.”

“That’s not true.”

“Of course, it’s true Clem. You told me yourself that Lilly was from the Air Force.”

“I know, but that doesn’t mean we’re gonna lose.” Clementine strode from the door to Violet’s side, shrinking the distance between them. “We can get through this, Vi. We have the advantage of home territory and surprise. We have Mitch’s bombs. They won’t know what’s coming. And you? Knowing how to fight? That can protect people, Violet. Yeah, it didn’t help the twins, but it can still help the people you care about now. Tenn, Louis, AJ.”

She lost her voice momentarily.

“Me?”

Violet averted her eyes, fixing them on the floor instead, deep in thought. Clementine secured her hands around Violet’s arms, giving them a firm squeeze.

“So don’t give up, okay? We can do this.”

She waited for Violet to say something, anything to make sure she heard her.

“Maybe if you weren’t here, I would have. Just given up everyone to the raiders in the hopes that we all stay alive,” Clem heard Violet whisper. “But you are here, so that doesn’t seem to be an option. I’ll just have to go along with your crazy ideas and pray that it fucking works.”

Clementine grinned, “Trust me, if everything goes according to plan, it’ll work.”

Violet gave out a short laugh. Clementine’s heart skipped a beat at the delicate sound.

“When did I ever stop trusting you, Clementine?”


	4. Day 4 - Darkness

**\-----**

“ _You were having a nightmare. Same one you used to have all the time. About what happened at the ranch.”_

“ _I’ll be okay. Just give me a minute.”_

_\-----_

No, not here. She can’t be here again.

Not in this place painted red with blood and fire.

Where gunshots rang and people screamed.

Where smoke smothered everyone and everything. Like a snake ensnaring the life out of its prey.

And above all, the sounds of AJ’s piercing cries. Over and over and over again.

But she’ll find him. She always does. No matter the cost.

Even if it meant…

“NO!”

Clementine shot straight up, sweat dotting her forehead, her breaths abrupt and short.

“Clem! Clementine, you’re okay.” Clementine found Violet sitting at the foot of the bed. She surveyed the room, striving to recollect her surroundings. The principal’s desk. Vandalized portraits. Rosie’s cage. “You’re here, safe in the school. The raiders haven’t come yet.”

Clementine calmed down, now remembering where she was, what they were doing.

“You had a nightmare, Clem.”

“Where’s AJ?”

“He’s in Tenn’s room. You were sleeping earlier when he came to look for you,” Violet replied. “Do you want to go see him?”

“No. It’s fine. I’ll… I’ll be fine.” She wasn’t too sure if she was was reassuring Violet or herself.

“You sure? It looked like a pretty bad nightmare. You want to talk about it?”

Clementine closed her eyes, shaking her head. It’s not that she didn’t want to tell Violet about them, the nightmares. But talking meant reliving, and Clementine couldn’t deal with that now. She needed to keep her head straight for AJ and for the other kids.

“Too painful of a memory, huh? It’s okay. You don’t need to talk if you don’t want to. Everyone has their demons.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry… Could you, could you stay with me, though? I don’t think I can handle being alone right now.”

“Sure,” Violet acceded. She moved down to the floor, her back against the head of the mattress. “Not like I’ll be going anywhere anytime soon,” she sarcastically continued, gesturing towards the decently-sized pile of broken arrows.

Clementine blanched, considering the lost time she wasted sleeping.

“You need any help on that?”

“Nah, I can finish it. You should rest, Clementine. You need it.” Violet sent her a firm look, letting Clem know that ‘no’ wasn’t an answer.

Complying to Violet’s request, Clementine buried herself back within the blankets, listening to Violet work on the arrows.

The nightmare was too fresh, though, repelling her from visiting the world of dreams again. The blood. The screams. It was all too much.

“Clem?”

“Hm?”

“Do you, um, this might sound really stupid, but do you want me to sing you a lullaby? I know it might seem childish and dumb but it used to help Tenn. And Brody. A long time ago…”

A lullaby. She had sung a few to AJ when he was little but Clementine couldn’t recall the last time she heard one herself, her memories hazy. Was it from her mother? Singing to her to scare away the monsters under the bed? Or maybe it was Katjaa, trying to retain some sense of normalcy at the dawn of the apocalypse?

Perhaps it was Christa, helping her recover from leaving Lee behind.

Before Omid died.

“Lullabies aren’t stupid, Vi. Not if they can get rid of nightmares.”

“Ha, yeah, I guess that’s true.” Violet exhaled. “I’ll take that as a yes then. To the lullaby.”

She heard Violet shuffle back to her previous position on the floor. A beat passed before Violet started the song. 

 _Little Bird, Oh Little Bird, Oh,  
_ _Have you gone and lost your way?_

Violet’s singing voice was unexpectedly beautiful and soothing. Clementine was surprised no one had ever mentioned it before in their group.

 _Little Bird, My Little Bird,  
__Don’t fear, the stars won’t lead you astray.  
__For people may leave and your whole world may change,  
__But the night sky will stay the same._  

Gradually, Clementine relaxed, lost within the ups and downs of the melody, memories of happier times drifting through her mind.

_Fly down the valley and glide through the trees._

Playing euchre with Gabe in the back of Javi and Kate’s truck. 

_Past the frozen lakes and stormy seas._

Celebrating Luke’s birthday around the campfire.

_If you follow, the stars will guide you and lead you_

Conversing with her parents using walkie-talkies.

_All the way back home to me._

Lee.

 _Because the wind may come to a stop.  
__And the leaves may fall.  
__The world silent, from all its scars.  
__But I will be here, waiting for you._  

Violet heard Clementine’s breathing even out into a steady rhythm behind her. She smiled to herself as she wrapped up the last arrow and song.

_Waiting for you among the stars._


	5. Day 5 - Danger

**\-----**

“ _I’ll go with you. Give you some cover.”_

_~_

“ _What happened out in the woods, I saw they had you pinned, and I… shit, I got so crazy. When I heard you call for help, I didn’t even think. I just let go of the arrow. I wasn’t even sure if I’d hit her.”_

_~_

“ _The fuck is all this?”_

“ _Focus. They’re just scarecrows.”_

_\-----_

Louis was right.

This was a really really really bad idea.

\--Earlier That Day--

“ _Hey,” Clem greeted Violet._

“ _Hey,” she replied. “You seem well-rested.”_

“ _Thanks to you.”_

_Violet chuckled. “I’m glad.”_

_Their conversation was cut short when a third voice resounded in the distance._

“ _No. You’re not doing that because that’s a suicide mission.”_

_At the sound of another dispute, Violet threw her head into her hands, groaning, and the two of them went to identify the spectacle in the courtyard. Lying at the center of everyone’s attention was Aasim and Mitch, the former frustrated at the latter’s resolve. Behind Mitch stood Willy, shooting dirty looks at Aasim._

“ _No, it’s not,” Mitch countered. “They’re just walkers! I can take them on.”_

“ _It’s not just one walker, Mitch. You’re asking to go into a herd! We can’t lose you! You’re the heart of the plan!”_

“ _Guys, what the fuck is going on?!” Violet growled, stepping in between the boys._

_Aasim answered first, thrusting an accusing finger at Mitch._

“ _This guy wants to get himself killed trying to get a bunch of walker heads. All to make our place ‘look cool.’”_

“ _Mitch?!”_

_Willy rushed out to cover Mitch. “No! Don’t yell at him! It was my idea. I wanted to stake a bunch of walker heads around the place.”_

_Violet crossed her arms, disbelief clouding her face._

“ _We’re at war, Violet. The raiders will know to take us serious if our place looks serious,” Willy pressed, bitterly gesturing at their vicinity. “Not the lame way it looks now.”_

_Clementine examined their surroundings. Willy did have a point. Although the wooden defenses were well-made and sound, they didn’t have the most threatening appearance._

“ _If Willy wants it, I’m going. You can’t stop me, Vi,” Mitch declared, his voice low and deadly._

“ _Yes I can if it’s a fucking stupid reason. We need you to build the bomb, Mitch.”_

“ _And Willy needs people to get the walker heads. So I’m going to get some walker heads.”_

“ _And totally fuck up the one chance we got through survivi-”_

“ _I can go,” Clementine interrupted, halting the altercation. “Violet and Aasim are right, we can’t risk losing you, Mitch. It’s too dangerous. I can go instead. I’m the best fighter out of all of us so I’ll have the best chance of surviving this.”_

_Mitch left no complaints at the suggestion. Violet glowered at Clem, irritated at the switch. She then sighed, shaking her head._

“ _Louis and I will go too, then.”_

“ _Uh, what?” Louis remarked, surprised at the call-out. “I didn’t sign up for this.”_

_Violet sent an icy glare at him. Louis lifted his hands in response._

“ _Okay, I get it, I get it. Sacrifice the clown first. Not like I have anything better to do, right?”_

“ _Louis, that’s not what I meant. We’ll need to keep the heads intact and you have the best weapon to do that.” She motioned at Chairles’s blunt structure. “Or do you really want to send Clem out into a herd alone?”_

“ _No, that’s not…” Louis’s shoulders slumped. “All right, I’ll go. But if I end up becoming buddies with the walker herd, I’m definitely coming back to collect you two.” He pointed at Mitch and Willy._

“ _Because I agree with the others. This is a really really really bad idea.”_

\------

The operation had started off smoothly enough. Within reasonable time, they were able to locate a walker herd just aways from the school. Targeting only the stragglers, the three of them established a system where Clementine and Louis would immobilize and drag the walker away to where Violet was, cleaver ready to go.

One of their marks had not submitted so easily, though. Halfway to their destination, his arm flew out like a defective toy, the rest of his limbs joining in a madman’s dance, snapping the tree branches and stirring the birds into a frenzy.

And now, Clementine found herself in this tight situation struggling against a walker with two more enclosing around her. As the walker pushed forward, Clem could feel the coarse edges of stone dig into her back.

Not that she didn’t know the meaning of ‘between a rock and a hard place’ already.

Out of the corner of her eye, Clementine could see Louis fighting off his own share of walkers.

“Louis!” Clementine called out in a strained tone. “Louis, help!”

The boy didn’t answer, though, seemingly lost in his own battles.

The walkers were creeping closer to her as Clementine’s strength drained. Her mind raced through the last possible options she could do to escape.

None of them existed without any external help.

Suddenly, a sharp burst of wind sliced the air and the menacing walker crumpled in front of her. Seizing the opportunity, Clementine cast the fallen walker to the left and jerked her leg out to the right, knocking out one walker and stunning the second. Brandishing her dagger, she quickly eliminated both of them before revisiting how the first one was incapacitated.

With a meat cleaver lodged in its skull.

On her right, she saw Violet sprinting towards her, wielding a heavy tree branch to neutralize the last of the walkers. Meanwhile, Louis had also finished off the rest of his walkers and retreated to Clementine’s side.

“Clem, fuck, you all right?” Panic surged through Violet’s eyes, tremors skittering up and down her body.

“Barely, but I’m okay.”

“Shit, I… I thought…”

“It’s okay, Vi. I’m still here.” Receiving no response from her, Clementine reached for Violet’s hands, grasping them. “You saved me. See? No bites.”

“I, I know…But god…” Violet’s hands folded around Clementine’s, the trembles slowing down. “I… AJ… He can’t lose you, Clem.”

“And he won’t. Not when I have you watching my back. Where’d you learn to throw a knife like that anyway? You got the walker straight in the head.”

“Mitch’s idea. God, he comes up with the craziest things sometimes… but they always turn out to be useful somehow.”

“I’ll need to thank him later then.”

“Really? He was the one who sent us out here.”

“Still, he taught you how to save me.” Clementine smiled, earning one from Violet as well.

Having recollected herself, Violet let go of Clem’s hands to retrieve her cleaver. The three kids began gathering the walker heads needed for the school with little chatter among them.

\-----

It wasn’t until they were on the way back when Louis spoke to Clementine for the first time since the incident.

“Clementine?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m sorry. For not saving you. I knew that you were in trouble. I heard you call for help. But I couldn’t…”

“It’s okay, Louis. You had to deal with your situation first.”

“If I was stronger, though, I could’ve…” Louis turned his head towards Clementine. “I know we’re not on the best of terms now, but I don’t want you to die, Clementine.”

“I know that. You’re a good person.”

“Good doesn’t save people,” Louis mumbled back, coming to terms with what to say next. “I… I’ll do better next time, Clem. I’m not going to let you die because of me.”

“Let’s hope there’s not a next time, Louis. But if there is, I’ll be counting on you.”

“And I’ll be there for sure. I won’t mess up again.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The walker heads are so stupid. So stupid. I can't believe the kids actually went out to gather a bunch of walker heads just to stake them. Aish.


	6. Day 6 - Regrets

**\-----**

“ _This is where we buried Tenn’s sisters’ belongings, Minnie and Sophie. Twins. Lost ‘em both about a year ago. Paying respects.”_

_~_

“ _I just… I feel guilty about the whole thing. I was supposed to be out with the twins that day. I wanted to work in the greenhouse so I asked Brody to cover for me. But then… I didn’t even get to say goodbye.”_

_~_

“ _Do you think Sophie and Minnie might be with them, when they get here?”_

“ _I don’t know, maybe.”_

\-----

“That should do it,” Clementine bound the last bit of wire around the corner. “Thanks, Mitch. I’ll go tell Violet our progress.”

“Kay, I’m clocking out then.” The tall boy waved a lazy salute to Clementine before retreating to his room.

Unsure about Violet’s actual location, Clem decided the courtyard was a good place to start. While descending the stairs, she spotted Tenn and Rosie entering the building.

“Hi Tenn. Hey Rosie.” The dog barked its greetings at Clem, wagging her tail enthusiastically when Clem got down on one knee to pet her. “Tenn, have you seen Violet? I need to pass some status updates to her.”

“Yeah. She’s out by the graveyard.”

“Thanks, Tenn.” Clementine noticed Tenn fiddling with his fingers. “Is something wrong?”

“Violet’s… not in the best of moods right now. Could you try to cheer her up? I tried to earlier, but she wouldn’t listen.” The fiddling stopped, concentration permeating his expression. “She listens to you, though. So maybe, you could do something?”

Clementine bit her lip, not exactly confident she was fit for the task, but the thought of disappointing Tenn was even worse.

“Yeah, Tenn. I’ll try to talk to her. In exchange, can you go hang out with AJ? I told him I’d spend time with him after securing the upper floors, but I might need a little more time now.”

The boy nodded, whistling for Rosie to follow him. Satisfied with her findings, Clementine exited the building. Sure enough, the leader was right where Tenn said she was, sitting opposite the twins’ graves.

“Hey, Vi. The upper perimeter is secure. Wrapped with barbed wire and everything.”

Silence. Clementine grew concerned.

“Violet, talk to me. What’s on your mind?”

“… The twins. Them maybe being alive.”

Oh.

“For the longest time, I thought they were dead, Clem. Or left to become walkers.” Violet said, her eyes remaining fixed on the crosses. “But now? Knowing that they could be alive amongst the raiders? I… I don’t know what to think.”

Clementine sat herself down next to Violet, letting the girl reveal her ruminations.

“I tried to push the thought away. To keep myself occupied with keeping the school safe. But every time I pass their graves, I can’t… I can’t stop thinking about what happened to them. How Sophie and Minnie might have felt, realizing that no one was coming back for them. And then some days… Some days I end up thinking of what you told me the day that Marlon died.”

Clementine winced, remembering the words that she said.

“ _If you were there that day those raiders came… He would have abandoned you, too.”_

“If Marlon had left me to the raiders that day, I’d…” The girl next to her started to curl into herself.

“I’d probably break.”

Her heart plummeted at the anguish in Violet’s voice.

“And knowing that I didn’t do anything to help them. That guilt. It eats at me, Clem.”

Clem scooted closer to Violet, wanting to ease the girl out of her distraught state and into her arms.

She settled for a hand on Violet’s back.

“Violet, you can’t blame yourself. It wasn’t your fault. It was Marlon’s.”

“I know but I should've pushed harder to find out what happened. Maybe asked to see their bodies or something.”

She was falling. Violet. Falling into an abyss plagued with ‘what-ifs’, ‘I-should’ves’, and ‘why-didn’t-i’s’. An abyss of self-loathing, blame, and sorrow.

Comforting words wouldn't save her now. Not unless Clementine proved herself to Violet, proved that she understood what Violet was going through, the constant gnawing of guilt and despair.

Clementine took a deep breath. This wasn’t going to be easy.

“After my friend, Lee, died, another couple took care of me. Their names were Christa and Omid.” She saw Violet lift her head, peeking out at her. “It wasn’t the best scenario, but we were alive and happy for a few months.”

“One day, I was in the girls’ restroom washing my face when I dropped my water bottle. And when I went to retrieve it, I left my gun behind. Another girl came in and found me. She was trying to rob us, though I don’t know what she expected to find from a nine-year old girl.”

She shrugged, the faded-out memories sharpening in her mind.

“Omid tried to save me. And she shot him. With the gun I left behind.”

She glanced at Violet, expecting a look of horror or pity or something. But there was nothing like that, Violet simply looking pensive.

Clementine continued her story.

“I don’t think Christa ever forgave me for that. After Omid’s death, we still traveled together, but it was different. Cold. Yet she still took care of me.”

“Then I lost her, too. A group of bandits caught her when she was searching for wood for our fire. She told me to run and I did. I never looked back.”

Checking on Violet again, Clementine found that her countenance hadn’t changed much. She just listened and maybe, maybe Clementine could even perceive some understanding behind those emerald irises.

“I used to think about them all the time. On how I failed them. They only took me in because they promised Lee, you know? And I repaid their care by killing Omid… Christa had been expecting a baby back then. But, because of me, she… she lost everything.”

Clementine shut her eyes for a moment, forcing herself to unravel the snarls of regret.

“What I’ve learned, Violet, is that you can’t keep yourself trapped in the past. The facts aren’t going to change. All you can do is accept that it’s happened and move forward. And to do that, you have to start by letting go. Stop blaming yourself for their loss.”

She let her words sink in to Violet.

“…You’re right, Clementine. You always are.” Violet slowly uncurled herself, resuming her usual sitting position. “The twins. They’re gone. And who knows what they went through. They might be there when the raiders show up. Or they might not be.”

She dropped her gaze from the graves, choosing to stare at the flowers instead.

“It doesn’t matter. Either way, I have to stop. That day in the greenhouse? The day that broke me, Minnie, and Sophie? It’s never going to change and I have to accept that. I have to… stop going back.”

Clementine laid her hand over Violet’s, shifting them so that their fingers could interlace.

“It’s okay to take your time, Vi. The more important people are to you, the larger the scars they leave behind. Just remember that you still have people here who care about you, so don’t get too lost, okay?”

The look Violet returned Clem was unexpected, a strange mixture of doubt and wonder.

As if she couldn’t believe that Clementine was really there.

“Okay. I’ll try.”


	7. 1 Week Later - Feelings

**\-----**

“ _But when you showed up… I don’t know, I just haven’t seen her warm up to someone in a long time.”_

_~_

“ _V plus M?”_

“‘ _Violet and Minerva’..?”_

“ _What’s that mean?”_

“ _It means that they were a couple.”_

“ _What?”_

“ _Violet was Minnie’s girlfriend.”_

\-----

Clementine outlined the heart-shaped carving, feeling the rough markings of the wood against her finger.

V+M. Violet and Minerva.

Before the raiders took her, Minnie was Violet’s girlfriend. Technically, still is, assuming Minnie stayed alive.

Clementine furrowed her eyebrows, trying to envision the two together, a cheerful Violet and an untouched Minerva.

She imagined Minnie sweeping Violet off her feet, nuzzling her forehead against Violet’s bangs. Violet shrieking, using her arms to draw Minnie closer, the smile on her face never leaving.

Minnie. Singing cheesy songs and sweet nothings into Violet’s ear.

Violet. Declaring to Minnie that she was her world and that nothing would get in between the two of them.

Minnie. Teaming up with Louis to surprise Violet with a birthday concert.

Vio-

Her finger stopped moving, positioned on the left side of the ‘V’. For some indeterminate reason, the images left a foul taste in Clementine’s mouth.

It shouldn’t matter to her whether or not Violet had a girlfriend before.

“Clem, we’re done with the traps! Let’s go!” AJ burst through the door, Ruby right behind him. “Clem?”

“Yeah, I heard you, kiddo. I’m coming.”

\-----

As the three of them headed back to the school, AJ ran up ahead to ‘scout out the path for danger’. Clementine and Ruby hung back to keep an eye on him.

“Thinking about Vi?” Ruby questioned, a sneaky twinkle in her eye.

Clementine kept quiet, pretending that she didn’t hear anything.

“I saw ya starin’ at that heart back in the shack.”

Fuck.

“It’s not what you think it is,” Clem denied.

“Oh and what is it then?” Ruby asked one more time, twinkle still in her eye.

“…”

“All right. Sensitive topic, I ge-”

“I was wondering what Violet was like when Minnie was here.”

Ruby’s mouth formed an ‘o’.

“I, I see. Well, she was a lot happier, of course. The four of them used to play in the courtyard doing all sorts of activities. Drawin’. Songwritin’. Buildin’. You name it, they probably done it. Or tried it at least.” The usually jovial medic frowned. “No trouble with raiders, trades or anything of the like back then. Everyone had been happier.”

If only Lilly had never found Marlon and Brody that day.

“She’s gettin’ better, though. Violet.” Ruby perked up again. “And I reckon that’s because of you, Clementine.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. Vi smiles and laughs a lot more now. Spends less time in the graveyard and more time hangin’ out with you and AJ.” Ruby regarded her with kind eyes. “You’re helpin’ her move on.”

Clementine’s eyes widened, disbelieving what Ruby was saying. Ruby had to be overstating her role in Violet’s life.

“And if ya like her, maybe ya should go for it.”

“What?! I… I don’t…” Clementine somehow lost control of her speech. “How can you say that? Violet has Minnie.”

“You mean had, Clementine. Minnie’s not with us anymore. Hasn’t been with us for over a year.” Ruby sighed. “Though you’re right. Vi loved Minnie. Deeply.”

They were almost back at the school, the pickets of the gate coming into view.

“Minnie, though… she might have been a good friend and best friend. But as a girlfriend? She wasn’t the greatest.”

Her interest piqued, Clementine waited for Ruby to continue.

“You know Vi’s a sensitive girl, Clementine, and you know how to approach that, how to be gentle with her. But Minnie? She wouldn’t notice those things. She’s a fire, Clem. At times, enchantin’ and warm. Other times?… Vi would get burnt.”

At the possibility of Violet getting hurt, all of Clementine’s other thoughts were incinerated to a crisp. How could Minerv-

Ruby playfully shoved Clementine, tossing the girl out of her fury.

“What I’m sayin’ is, don’t be worried about being compared to Minnie, Clementine. You’re better. Even as a friend, you’re better.”

“Uhh. Thanks, Ruby.” Clementine took a few seconds to recover her footing. Ruby was unusually strong for a short woman. “To be honest, I don’t really know what I feel for Violet. I mean, I like being around her and I like seeing her happy, but…”

“That’s the beauty of love, ain’t it? You’ll sort out your feelings eventually.”

“I… I’m not sure I want to, though…” Clementine whispered to herself, the pain of all the couples she’s known before tainting the notion, her heart torn between the promise of eternal bliss or eternal agony.

Once again, AJ cast Clementine out of her thoughts for the second time that day.

“Violet and Tenn are here!” The boy announced, quickening his pace.

Violet, Tenn, and Rosie were waiting at the gates, Tenn waving to AJ. Rosie barked in delight at their return. Against the wall was Violet, amused at Tenn’s and Rosie’s excitement.

Clementine unconsciously smiled at the scene. Beside her, she could feel the medic smiling as well.

“Whatever you do figure out, Clementine, take care of Vi, okay? She’s been through the most out of all of us so she could use someone to lean on. Whether as a friend or…”

Ruby winked. Clementine rolled her eyes, warmth rising in her cheeks.

“Of course, I will, Ruby.”

No had never been an option.


	8. Day 8 - Rainstorm

**\-----**

“ _Let’s get going. The sun’ll set soon.”_

“ _How do you know?”_

“ _I don’t know. I can just feel it.”_

“ _How?”_

“ _There’s this cold that settles on my skin. It happens right before a storm, too.”_

“ _I don’t feel that.”_

\-----

Torrents of rain pounded against the cavern walls. Wave after wave of constant water smashing against the stone as the wind howled and snaked through the air, billowing throughout the forest.

Within the cave lied another storm of equal strength, albeit of a different nature.

“Fucking Louis. We told him it was going to storm, but no, he had to be all ‘I don’t care! We need food! Can’t fight off the raiders with nothing in our stomachs!’ And then he proceeds to not have the balls to go get the damn food he wants. What important stuff is he doing anyways?!”

“Violet, calm down. We got the food. We just need to get back.”

“Get back looking like drowned cats, sure.”

“You’re not fond of the rain, are you?”

“No. Doesn’t bring back good memories,” Violet muttered under her breath.

“How do we get back, though? It’s raining so hard, I won’t be able to see.” AJ complained, the absence of his hood obvious to everyone.

After deliberating possible solutions, Clem ended up planting her cap on his head.

“Here, kiddo. Now you’ll be able to see.”

“Really? But you love your hat.”

“Yeah, but you’ll need the sight. So you can use it until we get back to the school.”

Her gesture was returned with an exuberant beam from AJ, thrilled at the opportunity to wear Clem’s favorite hat. Near the side of the cave, Violet had gone quiet, observing the exchange between AJ and Clementine. When Clem and AJ approached her, she doffed her purple vest and held it out to Clementine, her eyes looking anywhere but the girl herself.

“Here. You’ll, uh, you’ll need to be able to see, too.”

“I have a hood, Vi,” Clementine deadpanned.

“You really think that hood is going to protect you from anything? It can barely fit over your head.”

Her attempt at donning the hood confirmed Violet’s statement.

“What about you?”

“I’ll be fine. Been here so long, I could probably travel these woods blind. Things will be faster for us if you use it.”

Despite the truth in Violet’s claim, Clementine still didn’t like the idea of Violet’s only defense from the rain being a thin raggedy shirt.

“Take my jacket in exchange then.” Violet shot her a questioning look. “Wouldn’t want our leader to catch a cold. My jacket for your jacket.”

“… Fine,” Violet relented, dragging the word out and taking the jacket. Clementine slipped the vest over her gray hoodie. As soon as she put the hood up, her world shrunk, the hood engulfing her head.

She could see why Violet liked this vest so much. It felt like you could hide from anything under this hood.

“Clem. You ready?” Clementine could hear Violet’s voice slightly muffled. She turned towards it, angling her head upwards so that the hood didn’t completely dominate her vision.

Wow.

Violet stood there perched at the edge of the cave, scoping the tempestuous scenery. Her damp hair had been slicked to the side of her face over her ear, highlighting her bright green eyes for once instead of concealing them. The denim jacket complemented her tight jeans, both clinging to Violet’s lean frame in all the right places, Marlon’s bow strung over Violet’s back as a final touch.

“Clementine?” Violet called out again, breaking Clementine out of her stupor.

“Wow. You look stunning,” she accidentally blurted out. Fuck.

Hopefully, the hood had masked her face well enough.

“Um, thanks?” Violet’s cheeks flushed pink. “It’s uhh, probably the jacket. You’re pretty stunning, too, in this jacket.”

“We good to go?” AJ asked from the other side of the cave, curious what was taking the girls so long.

“Yeah,” Violet answered. She retrieved and slung one of the rabbits they hunted over her shoulder. Clementine followed suit with the second one. “Follow my lead, okay? I want to get out of this rain as soon as possible, so I’ll probably be running pretty fast. Let me know if you want to slow down.”

“Got it.”

In an instant, Violet bolted out of the cave and through the trees, Clementine and AJ doing their best to keep up. With the hood limiting her view, Clementine fixated her eyes on the bouncing blonde tuft of hair in front of her, vaulting over fallen trees and diving under jagged rocks. Occasionally, Violet would pause when she reached cover to check on them, but mostly she maintained her brisk pace, weaving in and out of the forest until they were safely within the confines of the school.

\-----

“Sweet, the food’s finally here!” Mitch whooped, shooting up from the stairs to collect the game. Once her hands were clear, Clementine shoved them in her pockets, making no effort to remove the hood.

“Whoa, is it Freaky Friday today or what? What’s with the whole outfit switch?” Louis questioned, his hands darting to and fro between the two girls.

“Get your mind out of the gutter, Lou. They couldn’t see in the rain, that’s all.”

“Okay,” Louis replied skeptically. “Just so you know, though, you rock the jacket, Vi. It matches well with your whole ‘I’m a cool, punk girl’ theme… Or maybe it’s more of an ‘emo rockstar’ theme right now.” He artfully dodged a drenched sleeve and twirled over to Clementine’s side. “Clem here, on the other hand. She looks like she’s getting swallowed by your vest.”

A dopey smile appeared on her face. Getting swallowed wasn’t such a bad feeling.

She heard Violet’s laugh ring out, the sound never failing to make Clementine’s heart race.

“You like the vest, Clem?”

Clementine peeked out of the hood. Violet and AJ had set their jackets on a nearby coat hanger with Clementine’s cap dangling from the top. Violet was holding her hand out to take Clementine’s vest.

Disappointment rose in Clementine at the sight of the hung jacket, wishing that Violet wore the jacket a few minutes longer.

She burrowed herself back in the vest.

“Maybe. It’s pretty comfy.”

Even if it was sopping wet.

“Clementine, seriously?” Violet said, befuddled at Clem’s stubbornness. “Okay then… How about this? I might have a few extras lying in my room. If I give you of those, can I get this one back?”

Clementine considered the tempting deal. Having an extra vest could come in handy. Clothes had been hard to come by for her and AJ when they were on the run.

She’s become rather fond of this particular vest, though.

“Only if you give me an extra one.”

“Sure. And it’ll be completely dry.”

Clem liked the sound of that.


	9. Day 9 - Responsibility

**\-----**

“ _Violet being difficult. Why am I not surprised?”_

_~_

“ _You’re sitting in Marlon’s chair, aren’t you? You’re their leader now. They’ll listen to you.”_

“ _They don’t, though. They only listen when they want to.”_

“ _Well, they’ll have to start if they want to survive what’s coming.”_

_~_

“ _Fuck Vi. Since when are you the one making the calls?”_

“ _Since no one else stepped the fuck up.”_

\-----

“They’re arguing again,” AJ stated as Clementine woke up, the indistinct sounds of quarreling penetrating the walls.

“Yeah, sounds like it.” Clementine rubbed her eyes blearily. The arguing had been increasing of late between the kids, the suspense from the raiders infecting and shorting everyone’s nerves.

“Let’s go find out who it is this time.”

\-----

When they exited the building, Louis’s voice spoke first.

“And what I’m saying, Vi, is that you can’t keep pushing us like this. People will break.”

“It’s not pushing, Louis. It’s telling people to do their fucking job.”

“Well you can them in a way that doesn’t make them want to kill themselves first. It’s too much pressure, Vi. Everyone knows the raiders are coming, so you don’t need to shout it at us every time you want us to do something!”

Louis stepped back, avoiding Violet’s eyes.

“Marlon would have done better,” he muttered almost inaudibly.

Almost.

“What did you say?” Violet snarled.

“I said Marlon would have done better,” he repeated, louder this time. “He would have known how to make us united, keep us strong. Instead of paranoid all the time.”

“Really, Louis? I’m making you paranoid? You’re the one going around telling us the thousand different ways we could die!” Violet crossed her arms, rage emanating in waves. “Not to mention that Marlon is the fucking reason we’re doing this in the first place. And that he’s dead.”

Louis opened his mouth ready to retort, but shut it again, sapped of his will to argue. He eventually stalked off to the gates, mumbling something about needing some time for himself. The moment his back turned, Violet’s shoulders dropped and she retreated inside the admin building, leaving the rest of their group to deal with the aftermath.

As if drawn by instinct, Clementine set off for the admin building, halting only when she discerned Louis’s form hovering by the gates.

“Can’t go one day without arguing, can we?” Aasim groaned. “Go to her, Clem. I can handle Louis.”

Relief flooded through her at the extra assistance.

“Thanks, Aasim.”

\-----

After a thorough search, it became increasingly clear to her that Violet did not want to be found. Already Clementine had made two rounds in the admin building inspecting the rooms to no avail. It wasn’t until she started a third round investigating the rooms upstairs when she detected a sound like a knife sharpening. Creeping towards the noise, the sound led Clem to an empty balcony in one of the back offices.

As soon as she stepped out, the sound stopped.

“Clem?” Violet’s voice. Arising from behind and above her. “What are you doing here?”

Clementine turned around, following the source upwards to find Violet, legs dangling over the edge of the roof, meat cleaver and stone on her lap.

The hood was up.

“Hey,” Clementine waved. “What do you think I’ve been doing? Looking for you, of course.”

“Me? I thought you’d go after Louis.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know.” Violet shrugged. “Maybe it’s because most people leave me alone after a fight.”

“Well, I’m not ‘most people’, am I?” Clementine smirked, hauling her body onto the railing.

“No, you’re not.” She heard Violet murmur softly in return.

Gripping the fixed balcony door for balance, Clementine scaled the wall using the protruding rocks. Violet waited and didn’t speak again until Clementine was seated next to her.

“Sorry you had to see that. Lou and I. It’s not usually this bad, but with everything being so fucked up right now…”

“It’s okay, Violet. I understand. The tension is getting to everyone,” Clementine reassured. “How are you doing, though? With what Louis said?”

“…What should I be doing, Clementine? Louis is right. I’m not fit for this. Marlon may have been a real shithead, but as a leader he had his good points. Like talking. Or keeping his shit together. On the surface anyway.”

Hood hung low, Violet’s hands trailed over the surface of the cleaver.

“And me? I… I can’t do any of that. Rallying, speeches, and all the other crap.” Her hand clutched through the hole of the cleaver, tightening her fingers around it. “Maybe it’d be better if someone else took charge. Aasim could probably do it. He has a good head on his shoulders.”

The hood veered towards Clementine’s direction.

“Or maybe you? We’re following your plan after all, so maybe you should be the leader. You’d be good at it, too. You’re strong, smart, and you have the experien-”

“Violet, stop. You can’t think like that. AJ and I, we’re still trying to find our place here in the school. We can’t take over.”

“Why not? I’m sure the others would rather have you than the raiders,” Violet huffed, resuming her fidgeting with the cleaver.

The walls had been raised again, blocking out anything against Violet’s view.

“Vi,” Clementine started one more time. “You know that’s not true. You’re not a bad leader. Are you perfect? No. But everyone knows you’re trying your best. Even Louis knows that. The only reason he brought up Marlon was because Marlon was his best friend and your leader for years. It's hard for anyone to accept change and for him? It’s going to be hardest. But that doesn’t mean he wants someone else in charge. The others are the same.”

She placed her hand over Violet’s, preventing it from any more movement.

“They don’t need to hear speeches or cheers or anything to know that you want the best for them. That, unlike Marlon, you truly want to protect them. All of them.”

“… How can you say that?”

How could she?

Clementine pursed her lips, frustration boiling at her inability to explain, the thoughts in her mind jumbled into an inextricable mess. She knew that Violet was capable of the position, that she wasn’t doing a poor job, but how to make her realize that? How to make her understand that she could do this?

How to make her see.

“I say that, Vi, because I know it’s true. Because…”

Lifting her hand from the cleaver, she inched it tentatively towards the hood until her fingers clasped the edge. Violet made no motion to pull away.

“I’ve seen it.”

She gently tugged the hood down, unmasking the girl.

“I’ve seen you.”

Spending extra time to teach AJ and Tenn how to knot rope properly.

Draping blankets over Mitch and Willy after they’ve exhausted themselves preparing bombs.

Giving Louis and Aasim additional practices to improve their stance and power.

Conducting solo runs to the train station to acquire medical supplies for Ruby.

Taking over Omar’s lookout shift at the end of a long day for both of them.

“Caring for people. It might not be as obvious as Marlon, but it’s there. You just have to believe in yourself. Trust that what you’re doing is right.”

Now exposed, Violet’s eyes flickered over to Clementine’s, her expression unreadable. Clementine instantly withdrew her hand and looked away, her throat dry all of a sudden.

“And if you’re ever feeling stressed, you can come to me. We could do something with it. Your energy. Channel it into something more useful. Like a shooting competition. Or sparring.”

A few seconds passed before she heard a snicker at the suggestion, disintegrating the rest of Clementine’s worries with it.

“You want me to kick your ass again?”

“That was one time, Vi. It’s not going to happen a second time.”

“Right,” Violet drawled, unconvinced.

Clementine swatted lightly at Violet in response.

“You better now?”

“… Yeah.”

At the acknowledgment, Clementine hopped back down to the balcony, extending a hand to Violet when the other girl reached the railing.

“We should go talk to Louis then. He probably has some words for us.”

“Yeah, he probably does. We both need to stop being assholes to each other.”


	10. Day 10 - Color

**\-----**

“ _What’s an artist?”_

“ _It’s like… a person who colors a lot. Draws. Does pictures.”_

“ _You mean like Tenn?”_

“ _Yeah, like Tenn.”_

_\-----_

“Yeah, but we’re faster right? So you can just dash behind them, chop a hole, drop it in and dash out again,” Willy explained to AJ.

“I don’t know. They’re pretty fast when they smell you. What if they grab you when you’re chopping?”

“Then you abort the mission, of course! And find a slower one in the first place.”

Tuning out the boys’ chitter-chatter about walker grenades, Clementine canvassed the forest, verifying that there were no signs of the raiders and their movements. Mitch walked beside her, one hand occupied with the boar they hunted earlier that day. Clem’s own hand was busy holding up a tied-up set of squirrels.

“You know, at the end of the day, they’re not that different,” the tall boy finally spoke up, having been unusually quiet during their hunt.

Clementine frowned at the comment.

“What are you talking about? AJ and Willy are nothing alike.”

“Hmph, I know that… Just meant to say that they’re both kids,” he replied gruffly.

“… Is there something you actually want to say, Mitch? You’re not exactly the sentimental type.”

Mitch didn’t respond at first, his attention drawn to kicking the stray rocks clogging his path.

“Yeah. There is. Wanted to say sorry for being an asshole to you and AJ after Marlon died. Not that I forgive you for killing him, because…”

His hands clenched into fists, animosity searing through his eyes before fizzling out again.

“Whatever. That’s in the past. Anyways, what I’m trying to say is, now that I’ve hung around AJ more, I get what he was trying to do, that he thought he was protecting you… I know Willy would have done the same for me if I was in your place.”

The two boys in front of them hit an apex in their discussion, Willy flailing his arms to demonstrate the explosion of an unfortunate walker.

“So. I’m still angry but I shouldn’t have been that big of a dick to you and AJ. Sorry.”

They arrived at the school gates, Ruby ready to open them.

“Thanks, Mitch,” Clementine said. “For the apology. I’ll let AJ know when we get back. I think he’s still a little frightened of you.”

“Heh, I can see that. Guess I’ll need to figure out another way to make it up to him.”

As they entered the school, Clementine surveyed the courtyard, observing what the other kids were doing. Most of them were mulling about in their own individual activities, Aasim writing in his journal, Louis shuffling his cards into a magic trick. Violet and Tenn were hanging around a picnic table, art supplies scattered haphazardly over the top. Near their legs rested Rosie, content with chewing the scraps off her bone.

“How about some weapon making? He liked that knife you made the first day.”

“He did?” Mitch pumped his fist. “Hell yeah, I can do that. Teach him to make some wicked cool knives.”

“Useful, Mitch. Useful would be better.”

“Yeah, yeah. Didn’t say that the wicked cool knives wouldn’t be useful, though, did I?”

The two of them passed the flagpole, Mitch abruptly seizing Clem’s game from her hand.

“Here, I can get this to Omar. Wouldn’t want you to miss your girl.”

Her head jerked in Mitch’s direction so fast she almost recoiled from the whiplash.

“Vi’s not-”

“Who said it was Vi? Could be talking ‘bout Rosie.” A big shit-eating grin grew on his face. “Come on. It’s no secret how much time you two have been spending together. Look. The kid’s already beat you to it.”

She didn’t even need to look to know that Mitch was right.

“Well, I’m off now. Have fun hanging out with yo-”

“Zip it, Mitch,” Clementine warned, stomping away from the smirking boy for the picnic table, noting the finished products surrounding it. A large tapestry with the words ‘LEAVE OR DIE’ painted in white. Another sign labeled ‘GO AWAY’. A third torn piece of cloth signed and underlined in green with ‘FUCK RAIDERS’.

Another one of Willy's ideas, she supposed.

After petting Rosie, Clem settled down next to AJ and peeked at the upcoming projects. Tenn’s new illustration was composed of a group of people, their faces unidentifiable as of yet. Sitting to his right was Violet, mindlessly coloring something with an orange pencil. Clementine stretched herself forward to get a better look, eyes widening when she saw the subject.

“Clementines, really?”

At the question, the pencil came to a stop, Violet blinking at her drawing before glancing up at Clementine. And then back at the drawing, a light shade of rosy pink coloring her cheeks.

“It’s, uh, not what you think it is,” she rambled, tossing the orange pencil out for a purple one. “Fruit’s the only thing I know how to draw. Circles, you know? At least, that’s what Sophie taught me.”

She retained her focus solely on the drawing, switching to color the grapes instead of the clementines.

Right. Violet was drawing clementines because as round objects, they were simple to draw. Not because of anything related to a human version of Clementine at all. Ruby and Mitch must be getting to her head.

“I like fruit,” AJ commented, joining Clem in watching Violet color.

“Yeah? What’s your favorite?” Violet asked him.

“Um… Uh…” AJ ruminated over his knowledge of fruits, whispering and listing them out on his fingers. “Bananas, peaches, cherries, pears, and, uh… Apples. I like apples!” he declared, slamming his hands on the table.

“I like apples, too,” Violet chuckled. “Want me to draw one for you, AJ?”

“Really? Then I’ll draw something for you, too!” He quickly sat his butt down again, preparing pencil and paper for a new masterpiece.

Tenn passed some pencils and paper to Clementine as well.

“Here. You can draw something, too, if you want.”

Clementine stared at the blank page in front of her, not unlike her current state of mind. The last time she drew something for fun felt like eons ago. What had she drawn back then? Cats? Unicorns?

Kenny, Katjaa, and Duck.

Lee burying the boy and his dog.

Bitterness poisoning her mood, Clem swiveled around in her seat to face outwards, leaving the page empty. For a while, she concentrated on the nothingness before her, clearing her thoughts.

Until she realized it was not entirely nothingness, a gentle breeze arriving to engage in a waltz with the fallen leaves. The two partners swayed to and fro in their dance, culminating it in the ultimate passion, the breeze sweeping and carrying the leaves away to a new destination.

On its way out, Clem captured one of the leaves with her hand. It was a birch leaf.

And a symbol of new beginnings.

\-----

“You made leaf rubbings,” Violet stated, reviewing Clementine’s sketch.

“Yeah. I used to do this a lot more back when it all started.”

“Wow. Both of your drawings are really good,” AJ praised, fascinated by the artwork.

On the left side of the table was Clementine’s leaf rubbing of three leaves aligned vertically, a dark blue oak, a light purple elm, and a pure red birch. On the right was Violet’s drawing consisting of the clementines and grapes with newly added additions of AJ’s apple and a watermelon. Clementine noticed how his eyes lingered longer on the sketch of the fruit.

Violet slid her paper in front of him.

“Here. Keep it, AJ.”

The boy cheered, dancing gleefully with the picture in hand.

“AJ, didn’t you say Violet could have your drawing?”

“Yup.” He ceased his dancing to return to the table, passing his paper to Violet. On it was a depiction of Clementine, AJ, Violet, and Tenn with stick trees around them all drawn in vibrant colors. The bottom of the page read ‘we’r rtists!”

“Oh and you can take Clem’s drawing, too. Your drawing is really good,” He repeated, emphasizing the ‘really’.

“What? AJ, you just said both of ours are good.”

“Yeah, but hers was harder. Yours is just…” His tiny face scrunched up. “Leaf scribbles.”

Keeping her mouth shut from scolding him, Clementine looked at Violet, nervousness increasing her heart rate.

“You don’t need to take it if you don’t want to. Just because AJ says something doesn-”

“It’s fine,” Violet assured, picking up the two drawings. “I should have room on my wall.”

“Even for leaf scribbles?”

“Even for leaf scribbles,” she affirmed, gazing at the drawings fondly.

As if the heart palpitations weren’t enough, heat rose from the back of her neck to fill in her cheeks with magenta. Clem dropped her eyes from Violet to find something else of interest, anything else that wasn’t the girl in front of her.

Like Tenn’s pencil, set down on the table.

“What did you draw, Tenn?”

He relocated his sketch to the center of the table for everyone to see. The picture displayed the current Ericson group plus Clementine and AJ gathered in front of the admin building, the shirt flag standing tall in the background.

“This. I drew all of us here at the school after the raiders come. Safe. It’s, uh, supposed to be a happy ending.”

Safe and happy. The best outcome.

“It’s a beautiful drawing, Tenn. I hope it comes true.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by Violet's clementine pin, because...it's. so. good? Whattt.
> 
> Also, the only reason that the fruits drawing isn't on the wall is because AJ slipped it in as a bookmark for the memories book. Never to be seen again. Yup. (Unless Ep4 shows the return of the book. Who knows?)


	11. Day 11 - Attachment

**\-----**

“ _I try to think of it more like a history book. ‘Those who do not learn from the past’ and all that.”_

_~_

“ _Clem?”_

“ _Yeah?”_

“ _I know you came back for medicine, for AJ, but after that you could’ve just left. Avoided all the bullshit with the raiders. Why didn’t you?”_

“ _Why would I go anywhere else, if you’re here?”_

\-----

“Hey, Clem. Mind if I ask you something?”

Aasim’s voice spoke up, muffled from the other side of the barricade. Clementine occupied herself with the task at hand, mounting and binding rope around the plank he was holding down to the center log of the frame.

“You just did.”

“It’s a serious question, Clem.”

“All of your questions are serious, Aasim. Shoot.”

She could almost see Aasim roll his eyes if it weren’t for the wooden obstacle in between them.

“No offense, but, what are you and AJ still doing here?”

“What do you mean?”

“Seriously, Clementine? You know what I mean. Why are you two still here with our group?”

Clementine jerked the rope, securing it snug around the log. She knew where this was going, what Aasim was trying to pull out of her, but she refused to enlighten him.

“Don’t get me wrong. It’s not that I want you guys gone, but I’ve been thinking about it and it doesn’t make sense to me. Out of all of us, you should know the most that we’re screwed. You know the enemy. You saw their guns and what they did to AJ and Louis. What makes you think we have a chance of surviving this?”

They shifted to the next plank, Clementine gathering more rope to fasten it against the center log.

“To be honest? I thought you two would have left already,” Aasim continued, bolstering his rationale for the interrogation. “We voted you out, Clem. You have no obligation to stay with us. And if it was for the medicine, then you already repaid that debt when you told us how to fight back.”

Another plank tied down. One more to go.

“Yet it’s been more than two weeks and you two are still here, fighting with us. Why? You’ve been on the road so long, you must have had other groups before, which means they either died or you left them. Not to be insensitive, but shouldn’t you be used to this, traveling alone to survive? What’s so special about our group that makes it worth staying? Worth risking both yours and AJ’s lives?”

He wasn’t wrong. There had been other groups. The motel group. (Decimated by secrets.) The cabin group. (Broken down by fear.) The Garcia family and the Prescott survivors. (Left behind for AJ.)

“What’s keeping you here?”

The construction of the barricade finished, Aasim stood up and joined Clementine on the other side, ready to receive an answer for his questions. Devoid of any task, Clementine’s hands fell down to her sides, shoulders slumping.

“… I thought about it once. Leaving.”

Back when this all started, when she would catch glimpses of AJ’s gunshot wound, memories of an agitated Lilly would haunt her. The shouting. The anger. The gunshot ringing in her ears.

The thought of AJ being at the other end of her barrel.

It was almost enough for the voice to whisper that this was useless, a futile effort that would merely lead to death or worse. That it would be better to take AJ and leave. Stay alive and leave the others to fend for themselves.

Only for Violet’s sweet voice to tug her from her misgivings, sensing her anxiousness and asking her if she was all right, asking her what was wrong.

And Clementine would look up at her, at the girl who stayed. The girl who fought for them and kept them safe.

And she’d see the girl beyond that. The girl who lost so much, whose own damage was as deep and vast as the ocean, yet who chose to press on, transforming that fragile heart of hers into one of steel.

All to hold what little left she had safe and sound. Because she cared. Because her love was greater than her pain.

And the thought of the raiders destroying that? Capturing that strength and shattering it into something to be used and discarded on the battlefield?

Unthinkable.

Hearing nothing but silence, Aasim trailed Clementine’s line of sight, following it until it hit one purple-clad girl perched on a ladder, helping Mitch string up the new ‘LEAVE OR DIE’ sign over their school.

“Oh.”

“I can’t do it. I can’t let them take her. Not. Her,” she repeated, pushing the last two words out through gritted teeth. “I know it sounds stupid. Staying here for a girl I just met. Risking AJ’s life for a plan that might not even work. But I can’t leave. I won’t.”

She could feel Aasim studying her, inputting her answer into his database of a memory, comparing and contrasting it with the thousand other observations that coded his impression of her.

“It’s not stupid to care for someone, Clementine,” Aasim finally replied, his tone uncharacteristically soft. “Having the ability to feel. It’s one of the few things that makes us human. Different from those monsters roaming out there.”

But having the ability to feel was dangerous, the logical half of her mind argued, recalling the questionable decisions she's made in the past. Like abandoning her group for a stranger in a walker-infested city, lured by the promise of her parents. Or traveling to a foreign ranch in search of a toddler, holding nothing but a gun and a knife.

Or staying with a group of amateur kids against a well-armed team of adults, knowing that the chances of total survival were slim to none.

Decisions that she could never change.

“For the record, I’m glad you two are staying,” Aasim appended, hoping to mend his case. “It makes me a lot more comfortable knowing you two are on our side. Actually makes me believe that we can all get through this alive.”

“Because we are, Aasim. We are going to get through this alive. Every one of us.”

And she was going to do everything within her power to keep that promise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So short, but so, so difficult. Was going to post this earlier but disliked the original draft so I scrapped it. And then scrapped the next two drafts afterwards. Apologies for the quality.
> 
> It's a loaded question. 'Why would I go anywhere else, if you're here?'


	12. Day 12 - Understanding

**\-----**

“ _Ha, I win. So, Clem… You can’t have been alone this entire time. Who used to take care of you? Family? Anyone?”_

“ _The first person who taught me about survival was Lee.”_

“ _What’d he teach you?”_

“ _Lots of stuff.”_

“ _Most important thing?”_

_~_

“ _Tons of energy? Really? You always sleep in late.”_

“ _I do not!”_

“ _You did one time. Totally blew off your lookout shift.”_

\-----

“Oh ho. Looks like the sleepyhead is finally up.” She heard Louis holler, the glaring daylight of noon blinding her through the school windows.

“Mm, good morning, Louis.” A yawn managed to escape her mouth. “Shit, I missed out my lookout shift, didn’t I?”

“Yup. Vi’s not doing too hot. You better watch out, Clementine.”

“Ugh, I’ll try to find a way to make it up to her,” she groaned, hands running down her face at the upcoming quandary.

Clem could sense Louis shuffle awkwardly in place, debating with himself on how to help.

“Maybe you should make a detour to the kitchen first. If you grab a cup of coffee, it should temper her down a little bit,” he suggested, barely touching his thumb and index finger together to indicate how little.

“Thanks for the advice, Louis,” she acknowledged, sending a grateful smile to him.

“No problem,” he replied with his own, goofy version. “Now, uh, I’ll be on my way to the music room. Gotta test out a few compositions. Call me if you need anything, ‘kay?”

“Will do.”

\-----

As she approached the lookout station, piping hot coffee in hand, Clementine could catch Violet’s and Tenn’s voices already in conversation.

“-ee me that way.”

“I don’t think there’s anything to be scared of, Vi. You should go for it… It’s kind of like what Louis always says, right? ‘Carpe Diem,’ seize the day?”

“Oh god, Tenn. Please don’t use Louis to lecture me.”

“I just want you to be happy, Vi. You deserve to be happy.”

Violet must have muttered something in return, Clementine assumed but couldn’t tell. Not that the conversation extended any further, Tenn’s figure descending the ladder.

“Hi Tenn.”

“Hi Clementine. You’re here for your lookout shift?”

“Yup.”

She expected him to leave then, the exchange over. But the boy didn’t move. Instead, he simply stood there, his eyes locked in a strange intensity, analyzing Clementine as if she were a specimen under a microscope.

Clementine almost stumbled from the pressure.

“The coffee’s a good idea. She’ll like it,” he eventually approved, dropping the scrutiny. At the change in atmosphere, her body relaxed, relieved that Tenn was back to his usual self.

“But will you be okay?” the boy added on, eyeing the rickety ladder of the lookout station, the wind swirling around it ominously.

She sucked in a breath at the foreboding scene.

“Don’t worry, Tenn. I’ve done this before. Maybe not with a cup of coffee, but I’ll be fine.”

\-----

“Hey,” Clem greeted Violet after an alarmingly distressful ascent up the ladder. Luckily, a decent amount of the coffee still remained in the cup.

“Hey. You finally here to do your shift?”

“Yup. And I got you coffee.”

She sat herself down beside the mopey leader and held out the olive branch. Violet turned to confirm the offering. Her eyes darted a few times between the drink and the ladder in blatant confusion before accepting the mug.

“Lou tell you this?”

Clementine nodded, Violet’s lips curving at the validation.

“I want to make up for my missing shift, Vi. Anything else I can do today? Hunting? Fishing? Your future lookout shifts?”

“It’s all right, Clem. You needed the rest anyways. You’ve been working too much.” Violet brought the hot drink close to her face, blowing away at the steam with gentle breaths. “Besides, you got me coffee so we’re good.”

“Vi, you know that’s not enough. Also, don’t tell me I’m working too much. When’s the last time you got a good night’s sleep?”

The gulps of coffee next to her merely affirmed those suspicions.

“Seriously, Vi? There’s nothing I can do to make up for it? You gotta have something.”

After a few more gulps, Violet finally lowered the cup, keeping it nestled within her lap.

“… Then, could you tell me Lee’s story?”

Clementine blinked at the request.

“It’s just,” Violet continued, “I think you’re a really cool person Clem, and from the way it sounds and the way you talked with Lilly, Lee’s the one who made you who you are. So I was kind of curious on what he was like that he could leave such a big impact on you.”

Her fingers traced the top of the mug.

“You don’t need to tell me everything. Just what you’re comfortable with.”

For a few seconds, they heard nothing but the trills and chirps from the birds professing their love for the sun, Clementine’s mind processing the bits and pieces of Violet’s explanation.

“… A story. That’s all you want? No extra jobs, shifts, anything?”

The other girl shook her head.

“Okay,” Clem acquiesced, leaning back on her arms. “I can do that. It’ll be a good reminder of him. And of Lilly, too, I guess. Some of it can be pretty dark, though. You can handle that?”

“We live in a world where the dead eat people, Clem.” Violet shrugged. “I can take it. Whatever you’re willing to tell me.”

“All right. Well, when it all happened, I was living in my tree house following my babysitter’s instructions…”

And so Clementine traveled back in time to the very beginning. Of how she met Lee one day when he leapt over her fence looking for help. Of thinking about dropping a hammer on him, but deciding against it.

(“Smart choice.”)

She told Violet about going to Hershel’s farm, being unable to save Shawn, driving into the city and finding a new group of people in the drugstore. Larry’s heart condition. Losing Doug.

(“You can’t save everyone.”

“No. You can’t.”)

Later, she moved onto the motel. Recounting how they managed to survive for a while, Lilly and Kenny somehow keeping the group together. Until the food ran out and they went to a dairy farm. But things were better at the farm. There was an electric fence, and a working swing, and Lee had recovered her hat.

… If only the dairy farm stayed a dairy farm.

(“You okay, Vi?”

“Yeah. Just wondering why you mentioned the salt lick in the barn. Did you lick it or something?”

“…I don’t know.”

“...”)

After checking on Violet’s condition, Clementine resumed the story, talking about stealing abandoned supplies to ensure their survival. Returning to the motel.

Ben dismantling everyone through his cowardice. Lilly. Carley. Duck. Katjaa.

Kenny.

(“Secrets and lies, ha. Sounds familiar.”

“Yeah.”)

She talked about the train, the train that kick-started everything. The lessons. The independence. The realization that Lee won’t always be there to protect her. She talked about the newcomers to the group. Chuck, Omid, and Christa. How Omid and Christa had a cat that Omid missed everyday.

(“Do you think the cat survived?”

“I hope so. Cats are smart.”

“I don’t know. Some house cats can be pretty brain-dead.”)

Savannah. Molly. Sneaking into Crawford.

Deserting Lee for the ‘friend’ on the radio.

(“It was dumb. I shouldn’t have trusted him. I shouldn’t have gone with him.”

“It wasn’t your fault, Clementine. He promised you your parents. Anyone would want to go after their family.”

“… Lee was my family, too. I just didn’t know it yet.”)

Lee coming to rescue her. Pale, weak, and drenched in walker guts. His left arm gone.

Finding her parents in the herd. Trapping Lee in a jewelry shop. Learning the final lesson.

Losing him.

(“And then I left him there, handcuffed to a radiator. Like a beast.”)

By the time Clementine had concluded Lee’s story, the sun had begun to set, the cool hues of twilight blending with the orange sky. No longer at the lookout station, the two of them had relocated to the couches, watching Omar wheedle out the campfire in preparation for dinner.

“Wow.”

“Yeah,” Clementine agreed. “Sorry. I know you said that I didn’t need to tell you everything, but I still went and did it anyway.”

It had been so easy to talk to Violet, to tell her all the details, divulge her fears and burdens. To have someone listen and understand what she’s been through, what she’s seen. And not judge her on her mistakes or foolish decisions.

“It’s okay, Clem. I was the one who asked for it,” Violet reassured. She leaned back against the couch, glimpsing at the sprinkling of stars in the night sky. “Lee, he sounds like an amazing man.”

“He was. The best guardian you could ever ask for.”

“You must miss him a lot.”

“Every single day,” Clementine admitted, recollecting all the moments she wished Lee were here. “But I have other people important to me now. Like AJ. And you.”

She cocked her head, regarding Violet. “He would’ve liked you.”

“You think so?” Violet shied away from the stare. “Even if I’m a ‘troubled youth?’”

“Even more so if you are one. Lee knew that mistakes didn’t define people.”

Not when he had one of his own.

“On the day he found me, Lee was going to jail for killing someone.”

The only sound for the next few beats was the crickle-crackle of the campfire, the sparks illuminating Violet’s face as she digested the new information.

“And you still stayed with him? After learning that he killed someone?”

Clem was surprised at the amount of vulnerability and uncertainty in the question.

“Why wouldn’t I? When he first met me, I was no one to him. Just some random child that could bring him down or worse get him killed. But even then, when the whole world was going to hell around him, he still chose to take me under his wing and to protect me with everything he had, including his life.”

The heaviness in her heart weighing her down, she chose to gaze at the fire, concentrating on the indiscriminate behavior of the flames.

“There was no way I could leave him after everything we’ve been through together.”

Violet followed her eyes back to the campfire.

“Yeah… yeah, that makes sense.” She raised a hand to clear her throat. “Um, thanks for telling me his story. I know it was a weird request, but it… it means a lot to me, Clem. Knowing more about you.”

Clementine smiled at her, starting to fully comprehend the honesty of Violet’s affection.

“It means a lot to me, too. Having you there listening. I’ve never really had someone my age before to talk to like that.”

Gabe had been too sheltered, insulated from the greatest horrors of the world by Javi and Kate. Sarah had been too young, not even understanding the basics of what life was like in the apocalypse.

And Duck… he never made it.

“Well, if you ever need someone to talk to, Clementine, I’ll be here. Always.”


	13. Day 13 - Family

**\-----**

“ _I like it here… It’s nice. Not driving everywhere, or running away…”_

“ _Do you like it?”_

\-----

“Aww, do we have to go?” AJ pouted, jutting out his bottom lip.

“AJ, I thought you liked the school.”

“I do! But I like the river, too.” He ran back to the bridge, planting himself in the center. “I like the fish and the water and the peacefulness… Can’t we just stay here for five more minutes? Please?”

“What for? There’s no more fish, AJ.”

“But…” The boy sulked again, mind blank of any rebuttal.

“Here, AJ. Come with me,” Violet interjected, striding past Clementine and up the river. “Let me show you something.”

AJ blinked at Violet’s slouched back, curiosity overtaking his sullen mood as he tailed her. The three of them traveled upstream until Violet halted at a quiet stretch in the river. Here, the surface was calmer, the rapids nonexistent, shimmering with the reflection of forest and sky.

Violet got down on one knee to AJ’s level, holding a circular stone in her right hand.

“Have you ever skipped stones before?”

“No. You can’t skip stones. You can only throw them.”

“You can if they’re over the water. Watch.”

She directed his gaze towards the river, chucking the stone over the liquid surface. The stone glided on the water, leaving ripples in its path.

One. Two. Three.

Four times.

AJ’s eyes grew into saucers, amazed at the magic before him.

“Whoa! The rock jumped on the water!” He twisted in Violet’s direction, arms outstretched behind him. “Do it again!”

Glad that she impressed him, Violet located and cast another stone across the river.

One. Two. Three. Four.

Five times.

“Wow,” AJ exclaimed again. “That’s so cool. I’m gonna try.”

He grabbed a rock and tossed it into the river.

Plunk.

“… It didn’t work. Why didn’t it work?”

“It wasn’t the right stone, AJ. You need to get one that is flat and smooth. Like a pancake.” Violet selected one to demonstrate to him.

“Oh, pancakes. I know what those are.”

“You do?”

“Yeah, they were in my magazine.” He searched the nearby area, collecting several rocks of interest. “Are these good?” he asked, holding them out in his hands for Violet to see.

“Yup, those should do the trick, little man.”

AJ cheered and turned back towards the water, primed to go again.

In the meantime, Clementine had settled down on a patch of grass close to the riverbank, content with enjoying the moment. No raiders. No danger. Just her, AJ, and Violet skipping stones on the river.

She recalled another time when she skipped stones. On a lake back in Georgia a long, long time ago.

“ _This is hard, Dad.”_

“ _No it’s not, sweetie, you just got to keep trying. Flick your wrist and watch it fly.”_

Violet was showing the motions to AJ presently, swinging her arm and snapping her wrist. AJ did his best to imitate her.

Plunk. Plop. Ploosh.

“ _I don’t know, Dad. It still won’t jump.”_

“ _You almost got it there that last time, sweetie. Come on now. My little girl isn’t a quitter, is she?”_

“ _No.”_

“ _Then try again, you’ll get it in time.”_

Clementine knitted her eyebrows, bewildered at the recollection of this particular memory. Nowadays, she rarely remembered her parents, their memories superseded by those of Lee and the others after him.

Memories of her parents? They had been too normal, too out-of-place to make sense of in this new world rampant with death and walkers.

Violet and AJ had moved on to spinning, jumping and pivoting in the air as fast as they can. Clem didn’t know Violet had it in her.

Plop.

Normal. Like skipping stones.

“ _Ed, are you trying to pressure our girl in learning how to skip stones? Honey, if you don’t want to, it’s okay.”_

“ _It’s not about skipping stones, Diana. It’s about mentality. Teaching our girl the value of never givi-”_

“ _I di_ d it!”

“You did. Good job, AJ,” Violet congratulated.

AJ dashed up to Clem’s feet, almost tripping on a misplaced tree branch.

“Hey Clem, did you see that? I did it! I skipped a stone!” he squealed excitedly.

“Yeah, I did. It was awesome, kiddo.” She held her palm out for a high-five, AJ eagerly returning it. “You ready to head back now?”

“Uh-huh,” the kid conceded, satisfied with his new knowledge. He jogged back down to the river, initiating their trek back to the school.

Violet fell in step beside her, carrying one of the fish buckets in her hand. “You looked deep in thought just now, Clem. What were you thinking about? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“Family.”

“Oh? Like your parents?”

“Yeah.”

And possibly the chance to have a new one. One with AJ and Violet and the rest of the Ericson kids.

A chance to have a home at last.


	14. 2 Weeks Later - Resolution

**\-----**

“ _Hello Clementine. I’m Violet. Nice to meet you.”_

“ _What he said.”_

“ _Don’t mind Violet. She uh… grows on you. I promise.”_

_~_

“ _So Clem. Anyone here you like-like?”_

“ _Yeah, I’ve definitely got feelings for someone.”_

“ _Oh ho! Who is it?”_

“ _Nope. Not telling.”_

\-----

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to just… talk so much.”

Violet shifted over to face Clem, her bangs masking her eyes.

“It’s just, I’ve watched people leave before. Family, friends. They never come back. But you did. And, now I can’t imagine what it would be like if you weren’t here.”

Clementine’s mind shut down, unable to believe what she was hearing, if what Violet was saying what she thought she was saying or if Clem herself was misconceiving her intentions.

But here they were, high up on the clock tower, seated under a blanket of stars and made-up constellations.

If it wasn’t a confession, then what was it?

“Um, shit,” Violet recanted, ducking her head and turning away. “That sounds so much dumber when I say it out loud. You know what I mean.”

She did, though. Because Clementine felt the same way.

Before, their group had solely consisted of her and AJ roaming the streets, scavenging any supplies they could find. Living day by day, praying that they would live to see the next.

And then they were taken here. Here where there were beds and food and warmth. Where there was a young boy who clung to the positivity in life and saw the best in everyone. Another boy who lived off of people’s laughter and happiness. A dog who mauled walkers for breakfast and accepted pets for lunch. Friends who enjoyed their company and taught them how to be normal in exchange.

And a girl who possessed the softest heart and the fiercest soul, willing to dive to any depth in hell to keep them safe from harm.

Even if it had been only two weeks, Clementine couldn’t imagine a life where Violet wasn’t there anymore.

She didn’t want a life where Violet wasn’t there.

“I think,” Clementine started but immediately retracted, shocked at her own mouth. “I mean, I hope… we’re more than friends.”

She glanced up at Violet who remained still and patient, her brilliant green eyes reflecting the moon.

There was no turning back.

“And, I want…”

So many things.

Security. Normalcy. Family.

A place to call home.

But at this moment?

Violet was enough.

_\-----_

“ _A bird is free. It could go anywhere it wanted to. Up and up and up, and never come back. Go south, east, west, doesn’t matter. You could fly straight into a sunset. And see where it ends.”_

“ _I wish it was me.”_

“ _Maybe we’ll learn to fly together, someday.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


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